Bavaria
Overview Territories Austria Along with northern Bavaria - now considered part of Austria - , this is the central and original part of the country that remained under Bavarian control after the nation's reform. Munich, still the nation's capital, is located along the (new) northern borders of this county and has recently recovered from the devastations of the war. However, its position is now contested by the rising city of Vienna that served as headquarters for the Progressive forces during the war and remained intact for the duration of the war. Austria is the most populous and developed part of the Kingdom. The former main territory of Bavaria has partially been integrated into Austria, while the other parts of the territory had been inherited by other families and lines of the Wittelsbach and never rejoined the Kingdom of Bavaria. (West-)Hungary Before the Succession War, Hungary was an independent nation whose leadership desired control over a part of Bavaria on account of their "better" claim. The Traditionalist forces in the Succession War sided with them after the Wittelsbach main line agreed to the demands of the Progressives, leaving the Traditionalists with an inferior claim. Consequently, they allied themselves with the Hungarian lords relying on their accusations, claims and military. The accusation being that the lands of Bavaria had been stolen from them. Due to strategic and tactical errors, however, the Progressives won a series of battles against their initally more numerous enemies and convinced several Hungarian lords to side with them against their liege lords, explaining how their envisioned system would change the balance of power in the favour of the rebels. With a growing number of Hunarian lords joining the Progressives' ranks and morale shattered by the early defeats, the Traditionalists and their Hungarian allies were no longer able to turn the tide. Some decided to surrender - in an attempt to preserve at least a part of their wealth -, while others lost their lives in the war's final engagement, the Battle of Preßburg (Bratislava) Eventually, the remaining Hungarian lords and the Progressive lords of Bavaria and Austria drafted the constitution of Bavaria and had the King, Otto I. von Wittelsbach, sign it. This act transformed parts of Hungary into lands of the Kingdom of Bavaria. Other parts of Hungary, however, remained independent - but, at the time, insignificant due to the collapse of their Kingdom. Slovakia Slovakia had been a part of Hungary before the Succession War and some of its lords had rebelled against the Kingdom of Hungay once the Bavarian Progressive forces had defeated the Hungarians main force. The rebelling lords initially fought on their own, diverting precious Hungarian and Traditionalist forces from other fronts, and were almost destroyed until they allied themselves with the Progressives, leading to the latter initiating a new offensive to relieve the Slovakian rebels. Their part of the country joined Bavaria along with the surviving Hungarian lords. Due to the heavy fighting between Hungarian and Slovakian lords, the formerly united territory was now seperated into two regions to avoid new conflicts. The descendants of the warring lords, however, ended most of their disputes peacefully in the years following the war, out of fear for Bavarian intervention. Some of them could not even remember the reasons, aside from the War, for the disputes anymore. Military Army The Bavarian Heer is composed of several armies based in the major cities of the nation and the fortifications and barracks in the vicinity of these cities as well as in outposts and fortifications near the nation's borders. The Heer is not controlled by singular lords or cities but by the parliament and the king. While the latter leads it and holds the supreme command in a time of war, parliament is instrumental in the military's funding and in the selection of the generals and marshals. Organization of the Heer The Heer consists primarily of infantry forces armed with rifles. These forces are supplemented by cavalry forces designed to flank the enemy or attack its rear. Rarely, the cavalry is also used to charge and break an enemy's line, but their equipment is no longer designed primarily for this purpose, as the advent of guns and cannons decreased the chances of success for such ruthless actions. Albeit conscription theoretically exists to ensure a high number of potential soldiers, the Heer itself is a professional army. As the survival rate of better trained and more experienced forces is clearly higher than that of conscripts, this decision is meant to reduce the losses and save manpower. It is also a concession to the industry which would have to counter the personnel losses due to conscription. Should, however, a massive war break out, conscription could be immediately implemented. As mentioned before, the armies are accommodated in the fortifications and fortresses protecting the border and the cities, but mostly in barracks in the cities. The large cities of the kingdom like Munich, Vienna or Budapest could house entire armies in their barracks and those of the smaller towns adjacent to them, but currently the military does not require all existing capacities. On account of the large capacities in the central regions on the one hand and the widespread existence of barracks in even smaller towns, the Heer can choose according to the situation whether it is stationed and massed in few barracks or spread over the entire country. As the excellent infrastructure allows fast troop movements, the Heer is currently not massed in the cities. Instead, the armies are separated in battalions and regiments – positioned in towns –, with the battalions of a single regiment and the regiments of a brigade placed near each other. Regional commands – either division or corps headquarters, depending on the size of the region – are to coordinate those forces and gather them rapidly once they are needed. Navy Despite having no direct access to the ocean, the Kingdom of Bavaria fields a naval force stationed at the Swiss port Venice, which is connected to Bavaria by trade and joint business operations. The fleet is as much a symbol of power as it is an instrument and asset to enhance maritime trade. Recently, Switzerland and Bavaria invested massively in the port of Venice to enable the city's harbour to accomodate the combined fleets of the two countries. Although this had no impact on the fleet's size or equipment it does, at the very least, guarantee their supply and reduce the maintenance costs. Bavaria's naval force are regularly participating in Swiss naval exercises. Religion All regions of Bavaria have been shaped by the cultural standards of christianity and its beliefs. The majority of the people does believe in the Christian God and the lectures of the Holy Book, the Bible, and the recently declared freedom of religion did only change this by a small margin. Muslims, Pagans or followers of other religions are still rare in Bavaria, but welcomed - as long as they are willing to obey the state's rules and customs. Since these rules are influenced by Christian beliefs, this cultural debate is sometimes viewed as a purely religious or ideological one - an attempt to abolish different religions without having to openly declare the existence of a state religion. In more recent times, immigration helped to offset the more radical interpretations of these rules and their social impact. History The Early Kingdom of Bavaria Bavaria was originally located in territories to the north of the current state, now controlled by Bohemia. In these days, the nation had been much smaller than it is now, consisting mostly of the regions around Munich and some inherited counties in Franconia. Despite the small size, marriages and short periods of war allowed the Wittelsbach family to extend their holdings to the south, including parts of Austria. This expansion greatly increased the nation's wealth and laid the foundation for the wealthy, peaceful and prospering country Bavaria is now. Reform of the Kingdom After the territorial gains had been consolidated, a succession crisis threatened to erupt into open war and, eventually, the destruction of the kingdom. King Ludwig II., the dead king's son and lord with the most powerful support, decided to prevent this from happening by any means at his disposal. He initiated negotiations with those of his relatives who also claimed lands and offered them fair, if not generous terms and lands in exchange for peace. Some of his opponents viewed that as a sign of weakness and considered exploiting it by allying with each other or at least surprising him with swift attacks. The young king, however, anticipated such reactions and secretly negotiated with neutral and potentially hostile lords and counts as well as some of his more moderate relatives to secure his position. He then manipulated one of his cousins into attacking him, annihilated his force, burned his castle and executed him publicly. This demonstration of power convinced his remaining opponents to accept his diplomatic solution and abandon their clams on the Kingdom's throne. Losing large parts of the original Bavaria in the process, Ludwig II. was left with his Austrian possessions and the lands in the immediate vincinity of the capital, Munich. What seemed like a poor choice at the time had in fact been an idea of the king's advisors who had assessed the kingdom's provinces and realized that the Austrian territories had the most potential and were easier to defend than the plains to the north. Ludwig II. also used his peace to reform his kingdom's internal affairs, putting greater emphasis on professionalism, effective government procedures and education. He also tried to reduce the impact of the nobility on his rule and politics in general. Although he succeeded in that, his reforms towards a central government and against local lords are generall seen as one of the reasons for the Succession War. The Succession War Once again the death of a king initiated a crisis in the Kingdom of Bavaria, but this time war could not be averted when the brother of the childless deceased king named himself king and declared the liberal and progressive reforms of his predecessors void. These actions were backed up by Traditionalist lords who expected to be instated as liege lords for lords they considered inferior. They also expected the council-controlled cities to be placed under control of the nobility once more. The cities as well as several smaller lords and some greater houses, who feared internal conflicts should these restoration come true, rose in rebellion against the new king and his supporters. However, with the threat of Hungary's entry into the war due to expansionist tendencies in their leadership and the ambitions of several Traditionalist lords, Prince Gustav I. expressed doubts about his fathers decision and wished to join the Progressives. The king proved deaf to his son's requests and favored war to force the rebelling lords and cities to yield. Even after the opening battles of the Succession War ended in the Traditionalist's favour Gustav remained convinced that the Progressives were the superior side in the war. Ignoring his father, he tried to convince other nobles to support his position, but most noblemen were unwilling to switch sides - until the Progressives won the Battle ov Vienna, beating the King himself in battle. The old king had led his forces from behind and received no wounds, except the ones to his pride, in the battles, yet he returned tired and without strength - worn out by retreat and defeat. Soon afterwards he died in his sleep and the crown passed to his son. Gustav rallied the few nobles supporting him and managed to assume command of the remnants of the King's host. Then, he marched towards Vienna and made a deal with the Progressive lords, accepting most of their demands while retaining regality for himself and his family. Now at a disadvantage the Traditionalists allied themselves with the Hungarian lords in an attempt to preserve at least a part of their power. By bringing the Hungarians into the Succession War, they should have regained the initiative due to numerical superiority. Gustav I. and his military leaders of the Houses Kyburg and Andechs saw this threat and decided to act as soon as possible: with their forces better organized they immediately attacked several smaller hosts of the Traditionalists, catching them unaware. They also sent ambassadors to several Hungarian and Slovakian lords who had expressed their discontent with their current rulers. While some Hungarian lords switched sides - hoping for personal gain and fearing possible defeat after the unexpected victories of the Progressives -, the Slovakians rebelled without allying themselves with the Bavarian Kingdom. These developments turned the tide of the war as it gave the Progressives the power to fight off the Traditionalists and their Hungarian allies who also had to fight the Slovakian rebels. Using the Slovakians deteriorating situation as leverage, Gustav brought them into his alliance and ultimately under his rule as well. His newly-formed alliance overwhelmed the Traditionalists and Hungarians in the next months, ending the war at the Battle of Preßburg (Bratislava) - a final attempt of Gustav's enemies to end the war on their terms. Gustav's forces flanked the hostile forces and denied them any chance to retreat. No hostile lord present at this battle survived it. After the war, Gustav reorganized his kingdom according to the Progressives' plans he had signed at the beginning of his reign and annexed the defeated Hungarian kingdom and the part of Slovakia that had supported him in the process. The New Kingdom The New Kingdom describes the Bavarian constitutional monarchy as established in the Succession War. This new kingdom is ruled by a parliament – albeit it used to include a class-based electoral system –, without which almost no decision can be made. The king remains the head of the state and the most powerful element of the executive. He is often allowed to interpret the laws imposed on him and the state by the parliament, giving him a certain amount of power as these interpretations can sometimes be seen as modifications to the law. In the era of the New Kingdom, Bavaria experienced an enormous rise of prosperity and expanded slightly to the east. In the same time, population increased rapidly, but technological progress allowed agriculture and industry to prevent famines and poverty. These developments helped expanding Bavaria's cities, especially Munich, Vienna and Budapest, but also smaller cities like Graz, Preßbug (Bratislava), Salzburg and Miskolc. More recently, Marburg (Maribor) prospered as well because of its position next to the roads connecting Bavaria and Venice. Linz grew for similar reasons: it is a hub of the Great German Road. Politically, the nation experienced a period of remarkable stability in which the only changes were caused by reforms that helped the nation to adapt to historical changes – like the growing importance of industry. Also, the power of the monarch was reduced more and more. From an economical perspective, the most important change and project in this time was the Great German Road and everything that came with it: the trade with the adjacent states, the alliance with Switzerland and the founding of Venice, the cooperation with Ostland and, lastly, the inclusion of Bohemia in the German trade network.